Krishan Kant

Krishan Kant
कृष्ण कान्त
10th Vice President of India
In office
21 August 1997 – 27 July 2002
PresidentK. R. Narayanan
A P J Abdul Kalam
Prime MinisterI. K. Gujral
Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Preceded byK. R. Narayanan
Succeeded byBhairon Singh Shekhawat
Governor of Tamil Nadu
In office
22 December 1996 – 25 January 1997
Chief MinisterMuthuvel Karunanidhi
Preceded byMarri Chenna Reddy
Succeeded byFatima Beevi
15th Governor of Andhra Pradesh
In office
7 February 1990 – 21 August 1997
Chief MinisterMarri Chenna Reddy
Nedurumalli Janardhana Reddy
Kotla Vijaya Bhaskara Reddy
Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao
Nara Chandrababu Naidu
Preceded byKumudben Manishankar Joshi
Succeeded byC Rangarajan
Member of Lok Sabha for Chandigarh
In office
1977–1980
Preceded byAmarnath Vidyalankar
Succeeded byJagannath Kaushal
Member of Rajya Sabha for Haryana
In office
1966–1977
Personal details
Born(1927-02-28)28 February 1927
Kot Mohammad Khan, Punjab Province, British India
Died27 July 2002(2002-07-27) (aged 75)
New Delhi, India
Political partyJanata Dal (1988–2002)
Other political
affiliations
Indian National Congress (Before 1977)
Janata Party (1977–1988)
SpouseSuman
ChildrenDivya Deepti Handa, Rashmi Kant and Sukant Kohli
Parent(s)Achint Ram
Satyavati Devi
Alma materIndian Institute of Technology (BHU), Varanasi
ProfessionScientist
Signature

Krishan Kant (28 February 1927 – 27 July 2002) was an Indian politician who served as the tenth vice president of India from 1997 until his death in 2002.[1] Prior to his vice presidency, Kant was the governor of Andhra Pradesh from 1990 to 1997.[2] He was a member of both houses of the Indian Parliament, representing Chandigarh in the Lok Sabha from 1977 to 1980, and Haryana in the Rajya Sabha from 1966 to 1977.[1]

Kant was born to parents who were independence activists in Punjab, British India,[1] and was himself arrested in Lahore during the Quit India movement.[2] After independence, he studied chemical engineering[1] and briefly worked as a scientist with the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi, before turning to politics.[2]

Kant was initially associated with the Congress, but later joined the Janata Party and the Janata Dal. He was considered as a candidate for the 2002 presidential election, as was routine for vice presidents.[1] However, the government and the opposition supported A. P. J. Abdul Kalam as the candidate.[3] Kalam took oath as president two days prior to Kant's death.[1] He remains the only Indian vice president to have died in office.

  1. ^ a b c d e f Inder Malhotra (29 July 2002). "Obituary: Krishan Kant, India's vice-president, who was determined to reform the nation's electoral laws and block political cupidity". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 12 December 2023.
  2. ^ a b c Purnima S. Tripathi (3 August 2002). "Obituary: A democrat and a radical". Frontline. Archived from the original on 8 December 2022.
  3. ^ "Congress for Kalam, Left still for contest". The Hindu. 14 June 2002. Archived from the original on 22 September 2002. Retrieved 28 May 2016.